Suit filed vs US ‘open Internet’ rule

A telecom industry group challenged US “open Internet” regulations barring broadband providers from separating online traffic into slow and fast lanes, hours after official publication of the order. The US Federal Communications Commission published its “net neutrality” order in the federal register Monday, making the hotly contested rules effective June 12. USTelecom, a trade group that includes major broadband providers such as AT&T and Verizon, announced it had filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to block implementation of the plan. The new challenge means the case goes back to federal court. Backers of “net neutrality” include online services like Netflix, Twitter and Yelp while big Internet service providers like AT&T and Verizon were vehemently against it. Dubbed the “open internet”, broadband was reclassified by the FCC as a “public utility” under a 1934 telecom law. Backers of the new rule say it is needed to prevent big broadband firms from locking out new services which cannot or will not pay for “fast lane” service. But critics say it amounts to old-style regulation that lacks relevance in the digital era.

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